glossary.md

Glossary

Workflow management system { #workflow-management-system }

A workflow management system (WMF) provides an infrastructure for the set-up, performance, and monitoring of a defined sequence of tasks.

DAG { #dag }

A directed acyclic graph (DAG) is a graph with a finite amount of nodes and edges which are connected such that no circles exist.

Host { #host }

The program which offers extensibility via entry-points.

Entry-point { #entry-point }

Access points for plugins in the host program. At an entry-point, the host sends a message which can be processed by plugins. Then, the plugins may respond.

Plugin { #plugin }

A plugin is software which changes the behavior of the host program by processing the message sent by the host at an entry-point. A plugin can consist of one or more hook implementations.

Hooking { #hooking }

See the reference guide on pluggy or the more general explanation on Wikipedia.

Hook specification { #hook-specification }

Another term for entry-point when talking about hooking and pluggy.

Hook implementation { #hook-implementation }

A part of the plugin which intercepts the message at one specific entry-point.

Private function { #private-function }

A function whose name starts with an underscore. The function should only be used in the module where it is defined.

Public function { #public-function }

A function whose name does not start with an underscore. The function can be imported in other modules.

PyTree { #pytree }

A PyTree is a tree-like structure built out of tuples, lists, and dictionaries and other container types if registered. Any other object that is not a registered container is treated as a node in the tree.